DeWalt DW1201 radial arm saw

[Dawid]

Hi everyone,
I bought recently a used DeWalt DW 1201.
My question is about how that should working, I mean it’s seems like while I attend cut a wood I have to pull very slowly I mean really slowly otherwise saw will switch off and I have to wait until blade will stop running to switch on again.
Is that a normal for that type of saw?
Thanks Dawid

 

[guineafowl21]

Is the thermal switch tripping?

 

[Dawid]

Probably as it’s keep tripping off until will start run a blade. Is there any way to check it? And where I can get one of them?

 

[Myfordman]

Is the blade blunt or fitted backwards? this will consume more power and likely cause tripping

 

[Dawid]

It’s not blunt I think

 

[Dawid]

Where in saw is that thermal switch placed?

 

[Sandyn]

I have the 1501 and the only time I get the thermal switch operating is with a poor quality blade (new generic TCT), wide kerf and ripping wood.
It has to be given time, however, I changed to a freud, narrow kerf and a blade which is more suited to ripping. It's like night and day. Much less load on the motor. It rips very well
There may be a problem with your saw, but before you start taking things to bits, can you describe the circumstances where it happens. Is it any cut? what blade are you using, how wide, how many teeth, how thick is the wood?

I think the cutout might be part of the on/off switch, but not certain. If you look for Dewalt DW 1201 spares, you will get exploded views, but most parts are no longer available, so the detail is missing.

 

[Dawid]

The blade is TCT Cutting wood, 60 teeth, make is VJT, 2,6 or 2,8 mm thick ( I can’t read properly) this is the blade which came with saw when i bought it.
Wood - hardwood thickness about 25-30 mm 60 mm width ( burning,smoking) softwood roughly same size cutting very slowly otherwise saw will switch off. The cuts are very clean but it’s very hard to cut anything.

 

[Sandyn]

I think the blade is blunt if it's causing burning. This will really load the motor. Never heard of VJT blades, they are possibly a good blade, but you don't know the history of your blade. The teeth of TCT blades are very sharp at the point, Even a slight dulling of the tip will reduce the cutting performance a lot. Have you checked the blade?

 

[Distinterior]

Have you checked to ensure the blade is cutting at 90 degrees to the rear fence....?
If it isn't set up correctly, the blade will be trying to cut but binding within the wood the further you pull it towards yourself.

The other thing I noticed from your picture,....That blade looks like it has quite an aggressive positive tooth angle....Normally, a radial arm saw blade has a minimal tooth angle, if not a negative tooth angle.
Having said that, I'm more inclined to think it's the inaccuracy of the saw head / fence than the use of an incorrect blade.

 

[Henniep]

The blade is TCT Cutting wood, 60 teeth, make is VJT, 2,6 or 2,8 mm thick ( I can’t read properly) this is the blade which came with saw when i bought it.
Wood - hardwood thickness about 25-30 mm 60 mm width ( burning,smoking) softwood roughly same size cutting very slowly otherwise saw will switch off. The cuts are very clean but it’s very hard to cut anything.

The blade might be too big for your saw which will effect the tip speed. If all else fails, try a smaller blade.

 

[Stevekane]

Have you checked to ensure the blade is cutting at 90 degrees to the rear fence....?
If it isn't set up correctly, the blade will be trying to cut but binding within the wood the further you pull it towards yourself.

The other thing I noticed from your picture,....That blade looks like it has quite an aggressive positive tooth angle....Normally, a radial arm saw blade has a minimal tooth angle, if not a negative tooth angle.
Having said that, I'm more inclined to think it's the inaccuracy of the saw head / fence than the use of an incorrect blade.

I cannot understand this,,,my makita saw turns in all directions in relation to the fence, all compound mitre saws do,,? And I push my saw through the wood rather than pulling it which I understood was the way to do it?
Dont tell me Im doing it all wrong!
Steve.

 

[Distinterior]

I cannot understand this,,,my makita saw turns in all directions in relation to the fence, all compound mitre saws do,,? And I push my saw through the wood rather than pulling it which I understood was the way to do it?
Dont tell me Im doing it all wrong!
Steve.

A Radial arm saw head works in a different way Steve......One of the big differences is, it cross cuts by pulling the saw blade towards yourself....The saw head has quite a few different adjustments & settings on it. Varying these settings changes the way the blade enters the material ( angle of the blade from vertical, angle of the blade to the fence and the skew angle of the blade).

If the skew angle of the blade/ sliding head on Dawid's saw is off, it would , potentially, cause the symptoms he has described.

One way of telling would be,....If the blade has a kerf of 3mm say,...The kerf in the material he is cutting should also be 3mm....If his kerf is wider than the 3mm, the blade is skewed and not set up at 90 degrees to the fence and the further he pulls the blade/ saw head forward, the more friction is created and the more difficult it will be to proceed with the cut....

A Mitre Saw sliding head does not have this kind of adjustability, or the likelihood that it can be knocked out of accuracy as easily.
Radial Arm Saws work well when they are all set up and dialled in correctly, but they can be finicky to adjust.

Edit.
I've just re read Dawids original post and it seems he is hardly entering the wood to be cut before the motor starts to bog down....?
Sounds more like there is a problem with the motor than set up of the sawblade/saw head....?

 

[Stevekane]

Got it of course, its a Radial Arm Saw not a Mitresaw,,,in fact I used an older Dewalt one years ago for a few cuts and it felt like a dangerous bit of kit! From memory it seemed like the saw wanted to fly at you!
Steve

 

[Distinterior]

Got it of course, its a Radial Arm Saw not a Mitresaw,,,in fact I used an older Dewalt one years ago for a few cuts and it felt like a dangerous bit of kit! From memory it seemed like the saw wanted to fly at you!
Steve

Yes,...and they have even more of a tendency to do that if they are fitted with a too aggressive tooth blade and the set up is wrong....!!

 

[ivan]

You often see dogs trtotting along, body a few degrees to one side of their overall direction. The blade should be exactly in line (or motor shaft at 90 deg to) the path of the blade over the table. Google for a free manual which should show all the adjustments. The biggest blade it can take is 250mm/10". The saw is not overpowered but should X cut 30mm stuff with a slow steady pull. Do not let the saw self feed - it will tend to, with the sort of rip style blade pictured. As a lightweight saw a thin kerf blade is best, especially for ripping. RAS Ripping needs the correct technique and anti kick back so check the manual carefully. There is definitely something wrong if the blade burns the wood.
The best book I found for RAS setup, especially lighter models, is "Fine Tuning your RAS". ther is a .pdf to download at http://www.drosera.f2s.com/RAS/RadialArmSaw.pdf.
If you want to use the saw for accurate work, it will need setting up and periodic checking, and will do a better job with an 8 or 9" thin kerf blade with a tooth pattern similar to a "plastics" blade. The smaller blade is beter controlled by the lightly made saw.

 

[hlvd]

When you switch off the saw the electric brake will stay on for ten seconds, it prevents restarting till that has released.

As for sawing, you should have a negative rake blade fitted to avoid snatching.

 

[Grahammon]

A couple of things spring to mind,
1) one the motor, knock off the power at the plug and with the blade raised off the table and forward so it’s not touching anything, spin the blade, does it spin freely with no binding ie are the bearings free spinning, I’m thinking of a seized bearing.
2) The motors normally are very long lasting, but I guess everything is prone to failure
a) Check the motor reset button. Is it tripping ie before it should? They are bimetallic strips? And trip off like an electric kettle does when hot.
b) or the motor windings have a fault

3) For me the more likely and I hope, as it is a simple but pricey fix, is the on off relay switch in the handle. They did have a tendency to fail, I bought a nearly new DW 1201 with a no start problem, my switch cost £75.
For the checking of the items, i’d refer you to the many helpful experts on this site who would advise on the more likely of my suggestions
re the setup of the radial saw, DeWalt used to have manuals readily available from their website, I haven’t looked recently but the pdfs were readily available at different sites like this one on the web, a Google search should prove successful.
I am comfortable using the radial saws and have had them for the last 30+ years. Setup for smooth safe cuts is key, as is a sharp blade. sorry chaps but I don’t buy the cutting out due to poor adjustment unless the blade it is stuck within a joint. And according to the OP that is not happening.
I don’t think the DW 1201 has an electric break, it is too old for that requirement.
if it was the windings I’d of thought it would have tripped the consumer units earth leakage trip. Is there one fitted?
I'm convincing myself, the more I think of it that it is the on off switch. They are complicated devices, if the relay inside is letting go under load then it would switch off and give the described symptoms. sadly they were pricey, again maybe someone here knows how to check them? I just bit the bullet and bought one.
if the OP can’t find a manual and wants one please message me else I’ll forget and I’ll upload one if allowed. Cheers Graham